The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1887-07-21

,ur street thoroughfares appear 10 be
armed out systematically TO men and
women who make beggary their trade.
and like other tradesmen find industry
profitable.
I have another rather curious case in
my mind.
Il is that Of q fellow who looks as
though he was an East Indian, and sits
nearly all the time on q curbstone on
Twenty-third street, between Seventh
and Eighth avenues, holding in his hand
bunch of pencils. The idea conveyed
by his attitude is that he is blind. His
face is shaded by his hat, and appears to
be badly marked with powder. It makes
no difference how hard 1t rains or SHOWS,
Or how cold or hot the day, this fellow
very scantily clad and with no top-coa,
and often in slippers, without apparently
needing anyOne-sits for hours and hours
with pencils in his hand and second hat
upon his knee. ! have tried him, how
ever, once or twice, and don't believe he
is blind.
The blind dodge is very easily counter
feited.
There is no more familiar figure in
New York than blind man who fiddles
apparently-1 say apparently because.
although he moves his bow over the
strings, have never been able to hear
any music-at the corner of Fulton and
Water streets. And there is another
blind man, who stands at the corner of
Park Place and New Church street, who
always has his hat of and holds in his
hands bunch of pencils. / took in his
situation the other day and did not see
that he got any money but of course he
must or he would not continue business
in the same stand for as many years as
he has.
Both men when off duty are as jolly as
grigs.
beggars, and do not know that there is
any reason why they should, for they
are inoffensive in their bearing and
rarely accost any one. But ladies on
Fifth avenue and on all the great shop
ping thoroughfares are seriously annoyed
by four or five persistent old hags, who
accost them rudely and Extensively,
thrusting with their foul hands bunch
of those long black pins which women
use to fasten their hats on into their
faces and whining out the price. If
lady to whom these wares are offered
pays no attention to the vender she is
followed and jostled and urged to pur.
chase. If she declines she is made the
object of further annoyance, and often
times, in order to avoid these creatures,
women 60 into stores or across the stree,
that they may be rid of the importantly.
Another form of beggary here is car
ried on by children, who, with one or
two oranges or box or so of matches,
or few apples, 60 into offices and tell
piteous tales of suffering at home and ask
the people in the store or Office, as the
case may be, to purchase their goods. In
many cases, rather than be bothered, q
man will throw them ten cents or quar-
ter and tell them to get out But it is
bad investment, for the word soon
spreads from child to child, and
good nature is certain to be victim
lied in the end. They take It for granted
that the money will be given and the
oranges will not be taken. At the Park
Place station, Of which have written
above, every night stands young man
with his boot-blacking utensils, and as
passengers come hurrying to catch .
train he drawls out his willingness to
black their boots for cent, accompanied
by the assertion that he has had nothing
to eat for twenty-four hours and that his
mother 10 sick or father is dead, or some
equally narrowing assertion.
never saw him black boots.
OF course, no man would permit him
to black his boots for q penny, and
equally Of course, If a man Is rushing to
catch an uptown train late at night, he
10 not going to stop to have his boots
blacked at any price. The consequence
10 that one is apt to say, "Never mind
the blacking; here is nickel for you,"
or . dime, or whatever It is. The in
genuity of these fellows is notable, and
II 1t was devoted to some good end would
very likely bring about as rich a return
as they now get in this fast-growing
nuisance.
Queer folks hereabouts. HOWARD.